Rowan Energy Collaborative (ROWEC) team evaluating most cost-effective, environmentally responsible ways to expand NJ’s nuclear generation capacity

For Immediate Release
March 4, 2026

GLASSBORO – Boosted by a New Jersey State Policy Lab grant, the Rowan Energy Collaborative (ROWEC) is researching the most efficient, cost-effective and environmentally responsible ways to expand nuclear power generation in New Jersey.

“Energy production has significant impacts on our environment and the economic growth of our region.  Nuclear power has the benefit of not emitting carbon during energy production, and with proper planning can expand energy production in a secure and dispatchable manner,” said Eddie Guerra, Ph.D., Associate Dean for Strategic Sustainability and Engagement at Rowan’s School of Earth and Environment.

Guerra serves as project director for the interdisciplinary ROWEC team, which brings together faculty from nuclear and environmental engineering, physics, economics, accounting and information systems, and public policy, as well as graduate and undergraduate students from the various disciplines, to work on the project, which won a seed grant from the New Jersey State Policy Lab.

“This project fits perfectly with ROWEC's mission to serve as a connector, collaborator, and resource for identifying and implementing energy solutions that meet the complex needs and opportunities of today and tomorrow.” — Marie Casanova, ROWEC Project Coordinator

“Nuclear energy plays a critical role in meeting New Jersey's rising electricity demand driven by data centers and other energy-intensive industries,” said Yolanda Mack, Ph.D., Associate Dean for Industry Partnerships and Workforce Development, Henry M. Rowan College of Engineering. “This work is about equipping decision-makers with the technical, economic, and workforce insights needed to make informed choices about the state’s energy future.”

Mark Magyar, Director of Rowan’s Steve Sweeney Center for Public Policy, said the ROWEC project would provide valuable data-driven analysis that would inform and supplement the work of the Sherrill Administration, which is establishing a Nuclear Power Task Force under Executive Order 2, and the state Legislature, which considered a nuclear subsidy bill during the December-January lame duck session. The ROWEC team will:

1. Study the financing and construction of Vogtle Units 3 and 4 in Georgia and Watts Bar Unit 2 in Tennessee, the only new U.S. reactors built since 1997; the four Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) being built at Darlington in Ontario, Canada; the Palisades nuclear project that includes restarting a closed nuclear reactor and building an SMR on the same site in Michigan, and other proposed nuclear projects;
2. Analyze the fiscal, regulatory, technical, environmental, supply chain, labor, safety and interconnection issues involved in moving forward on a fourth PSEG Nuclear reactor, Holtec’s proposal to build SMRs at Oyster Creek, and other potential New Jersey projects;
3. Analyze the impact on costs of expanding capacity through new nuclear construction, compared to investment in large-scale solar, new natural gas plants or offshore wind power being generated in other states; and
4. Explore financing options for nuclear power plant construction, including direct state government investment or financing and/or multi-state pension fund investment.

ROWEC and the Sweeney Center will co-host a Tuesday, April 21, conference on “Expanding New Jersey’s Nuclear Generation Capacity” in Rowan University’s Chamberlain Student Center. The conference will be the Sweeney Center’s sixth energy conference since 2023.

The ROWEC team will work closely with government, industry and environmental experts at all levels, and will analyze public and stakeholder perceptions about energy generation, costs/affordability, and environmental and safety impacts as part of its work. 

In addition to Guerra, Mack and Magyar, Rowan’s multi-disciplinary team includes:

• Christopher Peters, Ph.D., Nuclear Engineering, Associate Teaching Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering Department, Henry M. Rowan College of Engineering,
• Stuti Jha, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Economics, College of Communication, Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS)
• Kul Prasad Kapri, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Economics, CHSS
• Pei Li, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Accounting & Finance, Rohrer College of Business,
• William Riddell Ph.D., Associate Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Henry M. Rowan College of Engineering, 
• Marie Casanova, Project Coordinator, ROWEC, and Assistant Director, Green Jobs Academy,
• Garrett Broad, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Communications Studies and Provost’s Fellow for Sustainability.

Rowan University students working on the project include:

• Ethan Cantor, PH.D. student, Electrical and Computer Engineering, Henry M. Rowan College of Engineering;
• Ladarion Hardison, M.A. student, Urban and Regional Planning, with concentration in Geospatial Science and Methods, School of Earth and Environment;
• Daniel Carrasco, M.A. student, Public Policy, Political Science and Economics Department, CHSS;
• Fiona Currie, CPA student, Rohrer College of Business, Martinson Honors College;
• Maximilian Owens, senior Economics major, Political Science and Economics Department, CHSS;
• Owen McGlynn,  junior Civil and Environmental Engineering major, Henry M. Rowan College of Engineering.

“This project fits perfectly with ROWEC's mission to serve as a connector, collaborator, and resource for identifying and implementing energy solutions that meet the complex needs and opportunities of today and tomorrow,” said Casanova.

 

Contact: Mark J. Magyar
856-256-5868 (office)
magyarm@rowan.edu